1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of installing painting sytem and a painting-machine control unit for use in a painting booth.
2. Description of the Related Arts
First, before describing the invention, terms employed in this specification will be specifically defined.
A control unit C is defined herein as one or a combination of an operation control panel, electric control panel, air-pressure control panel, an electrostatic painting high-voltage generator and so on.
An external device is defined herein as one or combination of a power source, a paint feed device, a compressed air feed device and so on.
A first operation coupler is defined herein as one or combined plurality of a paint transport pipe, an electric cable, a compressed air pipe, an optical fiber and so on for communicating objects or data between the control unit C or the external device and a painting machine 13.
Further, when the control unit C consists of a combination of a plurality of the above-listed devices, a second operation coupler is defined herein as one or combination of a paint transport pipe, an electric cable, a compressed air pipe, an optical fiber and so on for communicating objects or data between a sub-unit relating to the operation control panel, a sub-unit relating to the electric control panel, a sub-unit relating to the air-pressure control panel and a sub-unit relating to the electrostatic painting high-voltage generator.
Conventionally, as illustrated in FIG. 9 which shows a prior art method, after completion of a painting booth 1 at the painting factory, a painting machine 13 which has been assembled at another factory is introduced and installed on the floor of the painting booth 1, and also a control unit C for controlling the painting machine 13 is installed externally of the booth 1. After the initial installments, the following operations are carried out through a side wall of the painting booth 1 for operatively connecting the painting machine 13 and the control unit C opposed to each other across the booth side wall.
(I) connecting via various control valves varied and many pipes such as color paint transport pipes of various colors from the externally installed device through the side wall of the painting booth to the painting machine inside the booth;
(II) connecting compressed pressure air pipes for opening/closing the valves and couplers for communicating various control signals respectively to the painting machine between the control unit C and the painting machine 13 through the side wall;
Moreover, the following checking and/or adjusting operations are carried out to check the proper connections and installments.
(III) checking the proper connection between the painting machine 13 and the control unit C;
(VI) checking whether the various paint transport pipes have been properly connected with the respective pipe-connecting positions of the painting machine through the side wall of the booth 1.
(V) checking whether the control unit C disposed externally of the booth 1 can properly operate the painting machine 13 and the control valves.
With the above-specified prior installing method; however, after the initial installments of the painting machine and the control unit, the operations (I) and (II) for the connections and installations through the side wall take a great amount of time. Further, the checking/adjusting operations (III) through (V) are also time-consuming and troublesome. Namely, the cables and pipes relating to the control unit C are great in number and complicated, thereby making the above operations further difficult. Accordingly, it is not rare that the system becomes ready for painting operation only after no less than one or two months counted from the date of the initial installments of the painting machine 13 and the control unit C.
In view of the above problem, the primary object of the present invention is to provide an improved method of installing a painting system at a painting booth which method can significantly reduce the time required for the system to become ready for actual painting operation after its initial installment at the booth.
A second object of the present invention is to provide an improved painting apparatus which permits easy and quick pre-operation testing procedures.